Going nutty for granola

ATCO Blue Flame Kitchen, Postmedia News03.17.2014

Buying your granola at the supermarket means settling for someone else’s choice of ingredients. When you make it at home, you can mix and modify, experimenting with flavours until you find something you love.

For regular weekend mornings, scrambled eggs or an omelette are both excellent choices for a lazy morning meal, enjoyed with a mug of hot coffee and the...

Typically a combination of oats, nuts and seeds baked with something to bind it all together, granola can also include myriad other ingredients. Coconut, cocoa, raisins, dried berries, cinnamon... everyone has their favourite combination. Buying your granola in a store means settling for someone else’s choice of ingredients. When you make it at home, you can mix, match and modify, experimenting with flavours until you find something you love.

Granola fans often have a favourite recipe they’ve been making for years, one perfected by trial and error. We hope one of these three recipes will become a new favourite in your home — or at least an excellent starting point — and will earn a regular place on your breakfast table.

Without extra additives to help keep it stable in a box for months, your homemade granola has a much shorter shelf life than something you’d buy in a supermarket. As such, it’s always better to use it up sooner rather than later.

Granola came into its own during the 1960s. Now, it is one of the most popular of all breakfast cereals.

3 cups (750 mL) old-fashioned large flake oats

1 cup (250 mL) sliced natural almonds

3/4 cup (175 mL) shredded coconut

1/3 cup (75 mL) sesame seed

1/3 cup (75 mL) maple syrup

1/3 cup (75 mL) packed brown sugar

2 tbsp (25 mL) oil

2 tbsp (25 mL) warm water

1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt

1 cup (250 mL) raisins

Combine oats, almonds, coconut and sesame seed in a bowl. Whisk together syrup, brown sugar, oil, water and salt until blended. Pour syrup mixture over oats mixture and stir until coated. Transfer to a lightly greased 12x17 inch (30x43 cm) jelly-roll pan. Bake at 250°F (120°C), stirring occasionally, for 1 1/4 hours or until mixture is lightly browned and dry; cool. Transfer granola to a bowl and stir in raisins. Store in a cool dry place for up to 1 month. Makes 5 cups (1.25 L).

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Cocoa Nut Granola

3 cups (750 mL) old-fashioned rolled oats

2 cups (500 mL) coarsely chopped pecans

1 cup (250 mL) sunflower seeds

3/4 cup (175 mL) sesame seeds

1/2 cup (125 mL) sweetened flaked coconut

1/4 cup (50 mL) ground flaxseed

3/4 cup (175 mL) unsweetened applesauce

3/4 cup (175 mL) packed golden brown sugar

1/2 cup (125 mL) honey

1/4 cup (50 mL) unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tbsp (25 mL) oil

2 tsp (10 mL) cinnamon

1 tsp (5 mL) ground ginger

1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt

1/2 cup (125 mL) dried blueberries

Preheat oven to 300°F (150°C). Line two large rimmed baking sheets with non-stick foil.

Combine oats, pecans, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, coconut and flaxseed in a large bowl. Whisk together next 8 ingredients (applesauce through salt) until blended. Pour applesauce mixture over oats mixture and stir until coated. Spread in prepared pans.

Bake, stirring occasionally, for 50 minutes or until browned. Cool completely in pans on racks, stirring occasionally. Stir in blueberries. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Makes about 10 cups (2.5 L).

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